Black Sabbath - Paranoid - 1970 UK 1st - Vertigo White Label Test Press / Promo
  A$   3,000
  $   1,988   

 


A$ 3000   (best offer accepted)   Sold For
Apr 3, 2025 Sold Date
Mar 16, 2025 Start Date
1 Number Of Bids
  Australia Country Of Seller
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Description

Black Sabbath - Paranoid

A Black Sabbath Holy Grail - An amazing relic of musical history. An original 1970 Vertigo UK pre release White Label / Test Pressing / Promo, with the earliest ever, prototype / sample cover. Impossibly rare.
Earliest Mother and Stamper codes.
 6360011 1Y//1 420   1 2 1 6360011 2Y//1 420   1 1 2
The labels have the original Vertigo plastic laminate over them, they are pressed labels, they are not raw paper. The most obvious sign that identifies this vinyl record as a UK 1st issue, is the absence of a break between the tracks "Hand of Doom" and "Rat Salad" on the B side, which is unique to the UK first Master. The B side looks like it has only 3 tracks, but there are actually 4.
The run-out stamps are identical to the UK first issue stamps, not just the earliest Mother / Stamper codes, but identical font, font spacing, all fade and indentation characteristics of the stamps are absolutely spot on.
 These are 2 of the earliest matrix codes that you will ever see, and this was pressed at the start of the stamper's life, not towards the end of it. 1st masters - 1st mothers - 1st and 2nd Stampers. 2 is the first mother for the A side, because the first A side Mother failed, and was never used.
The inclusion of the sample cover, (along with the earliest run-out matrices) indicate that this is a pre-release White Label, to finalize, and sign off on the issue. The sample cover is identifiable as a first issue sleeve, even without the inside of the gatefold, and the Big Bear credits.
The absolute kicker for the sleeve is the Vertigo swirl on the front top left of the cover. The logo print is slightly out of register with the rest of the sleeve, leaving a small amount of the base white card showing through the Vertigo swirl.
This slight printing error is like a fingerprint from the original manufacturers print, and this printing error is particular to the earliest sleeves released, as the error to the company logo had been missed in the final check. (Quite possibly this actual package - and perhaps understandable, as I think that the printing error does make the Swirl logo look better, but it is an error that would be reproduced for the earliest copies, until somebody noticed!) If you check the historical sales and images for the UK first press with the Big Bear credit, then you will see that only some Big Bear sleeves have this slight, but visible registry error in the printing of the swirl, and the VO Price code, on the back of the cover (the earliest pressings, with single digit stamper codes) .
The cover has a 4 written with marker pen on the front, suggesting there were possibly more of these, and this is the 4th copy - they would be going to band members, sound engineers and the important people behind the production of this record.
There is no inside to the cover, and no flaps or evidence of joins to anything, the edges are clearly original, and this was never a complete sleeve.
The construction of the official 1st released sleeve is all done with one single piece of folded card, this is clearly a prototype, not a cut down sleeve, the edges are old, they are perfect, die cut edges, and they are perfectly straight. This cover is a pre-production sample. It sorta beats every Big Bear cover on the planet. Label: Vertigo ‎– 6360 011 Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, before the inside of the gatefold had any credits, let alone the Big Bear Management Credits - 
 Country: UK Manufactured: Before the 22 Sep 1970 Genre: Rock Style: Hard Rock, Heavy Metal

Tracklist

A1 War Pigs
A2 Paranoid
A3 Planet Caravan
A4 Iron Man
B1 Electric Funeral
B2 Hand Of Doom
B3 Rat Salad
B4 Fairies Wear Boots

Companies, etc.

  • Published By – Essex Music International Ltd.
  • Produced For – Tony Hall Enterprises
  • Recorded At – Regent Sound Studios
  • Recorded At – Island Studios
  • Lacquer Cut At – Phonodisc Ltd.

Credits

  • Bass Guitar – Terry "Geezer" Butle
  • Design, Photography By – Keef 
  • Drums – Bill Ward
  • Engineer – Brian Humphries, Tony Allom
  • Lead Guitar – Tony Iommi
  • Management [Big Bear, Birmingham] – Jim Simpson
  • Producer – Rodger Bain
  • Vocals – Ozzy Osbourne
  • Written By – Iommi / Osbourne / Butler / Ward
  • Written-By – Ward, Osbourne, Butler, Iommi
℗1970

Barcode and Other Identifiers

  • Matrix / Runout (B-side label): 6360 011 2
  • Price Code (Rear of sleeve boxed below Cat.No.): VO PRICE CODE
  • Matrix / Runout (A-side runout stamped): 6360011 1Y//1 420 1 2 1
  • Matrix / Runout (B-side runout stamped): 6360011 2Y//1 420 1 1 2


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